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National Weather Service meteorologists in Norman will have a new perspective for viewing radar information

Dual-polarization radar sends and receives both horizontal and vertical pulses, providing a much more informative picture of whatever is out there, said David Andra, the meteorologist in charge of the Norman Forecast Office.

On Dec. 19, forecasters at the National Weather Service office in Amarillo, Texas, had called for possible blizzard conditions just outside their windows in the center of the Panhandle. But as the system got closer to Texas, the dual-polarization radar they'd been using for less than two months offered a much clearer picture. Amarillo was about to receive a little snow and a good rain, but the northern counties were about to experience the blizzard.

David Andra is the meteorologist in charge of the National Weather Service, Norman Forecast Office.
STEVE SISNEY - THE OKLAHOMAN

Jose Garcia, meteorologist in charge of the Amarillo office, which covers the Texas and Oklahoma panhandles, said the forecast was able to be adjusted because of the dual-polarization radar. That technology soon will be in use throughout the National Weather Service coverage area based in Norman, meaning meteorologists in that forecast office will have the same tool going into this winter.

Conventional Doppler radars send out a horizontal pulse that allows forecasters to see precipitation, but can't tell the difference between rain, snow or hail, said David Andra, meteorologist in charge of the Norman Forecast Office. Dual-polarization radar sends and receives horizontal and vertical pulses, providing a much more informative picture of what is out there.

“It helps us understand what we see on the radar and have been seeing on the radar for many years,” Andra said. “It helps us be more confident that what we see is wet snow or dry snow or it's rain or it's heavy rain. It just allows us to be more confident and specific with our information.

“It won't make any difference in the forecast several days before or in the lead-time information for tornadoes. However, in the very short-term, when the rain or snow or whatever is ongoing, we hope that we can be more specific as to what it is that is falling out there. And if we know what's falling upstream, let's say from Oklahoma City, with some confidence, we can better tell what's likely going to happen in Oklahoma City maybe three hours from now when it moves into our area,” Andra said.

Amarillo example

During the Dec. 19 storm, Amarillo got between 1 and 3 inches of snow, while areas in the northwest Texas Panhandle and the Oklahoma Panhandle received 6 inches to a foot of snow. Areas including Kenton in the far western Oklahoma Panhandle received 12 inches of snow or more.

Garcia said that was the first of two real tests for Amarillo's dual-polarization radar. The latter came in April. Supercell thunderstorms erupted across the Texas Panhandle in the afternoon hours April 11, and one storm produced a vast quantity of pea- to golf-ball-size hail across U.S. 287 that buried cars up to 4 feet deep.

“That developed and could be seen clearly in the dual-pol products,” Garcia said. “You can really see very vividly where that hail was falling and the specific location. I think that's going to really help us in the future to be able to pinpoint and look at products like that being generated by the dual-pol.

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by Bryan Painter

Assistant Local Editor

Bryan Painter, assistant local editor, has 31 years’ experience in journalism, including 22 years with the state's largest newspaper, The Oklahoman. In that time he has covered such events as the April 19, 1995 bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah...